


Love Light

by baeconandeggs, singilu



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-20
Updated: 2016-05-20
Packaged: 2018-06-09 05:26:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6891994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baeconandeggs/pseuds/baeconandeggs, https://archiveofourown.org/users/singilu/pseuds/singilu
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Being love advisors on-air, Baekhyun wonders when he can take his own advice and tell his co-host about his feelings for him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Love Light

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this brings someone at least a bit of joy. All the random statistics are taken off internet and may or may not be true. Thank you to my beta for being so good to me and essentially coming up with the title

" _Hello, Baekhyun-shi, I've been listening to your show ever since it started, and I'm a huge fan! But only today I got courage to write about my trouble. There's this guy who I kind of work with, and we used to be around each other a lot. But now I only see him during work functions, or sometimes there's a glimpse of him in the hallways. Still I can't help but feel … I feel we'd be really good together. I mean, I find him really attractive too. I always have, but he's always this ball of energy and fun, and just … maybe it's not meant to be. Since it didn't happen back then … What should I do?_

 _Yours, Firebird_27_ "

Baekhyun sighs a little, checking the time he has left on air.

"Nothing will ever happen if you don't try. Just tell him. If someone told me what you just wrote about this person, I'd definitely give you a chance. Take the initiative, be confident!" Baekhyun raises his voice, attempts to cheer his listener up. "You're not complete strangers, so you're already one step ahead. Find a reason to get close again!"

Baekhyun pumps his fist like this particular person could see him. He wants to end on a high note. "Fighting!" he adds and starts to play a song, then he realizes he didn't address the first part of the letter.

"Oh, oh." He lowers the music in the sound control, "Also thank you for being so loyal to this program. From the beginning! That's quite a feat! You sure got a _lot_ of love advice in the past two years. Now go get him tiger! Or uhm tigress," Baekhyun laughs, embarrassed. "You know all you need to!"

The music plays, and Baekhyun hides his face in his hands, glad he's manning this show without a sound technician, so there's no one to laugh at him for projecting. The story was just … frighteningly similar. He hopes _Firebird_27_ , no matter how lame that nickname is, will come back to tell the story of their success so that maybe Baekhyun could become just as brave. One day soon. He slowly packs his things and as the commercials finish, he thanks his listeners for the hour they spent with him and wraps up the show.

"This has been _Love Light_ with Baekhyun. Come again to have fun and shine some light on love!"

He wonders how many listeners there are, the calls and emails thinning down lately. Maybe his show has run its course. Maybe his listeners can tell he is just as hopeless as them lately, even if he still wants to believe in romance and all the happy endings. Maybe romance and big love stories are dead. Maybe today no one needs love advice anymore.

Baekhyun's stomach growls, and he grabs his bag, scrunching his nose for the last time. He thinks his pessimistic mood must be induced by his hunger. Late night noodles and maybe a bit of flirting with the cute food stand owner are in order to cheer him up. Baekhyun lathers his mouth in lip balm, smacking them loudly, and gets going, mood already better at the prospect of a steaming bowl of good food, midnight or not.

 

Baekhyun loves his late night love advice show. It was a cheesy, super weird idea said half jokingly over a beer with their boss, Changmin, the night it was decided Baekhyun and Chanyeol would stop their successful run as morning program DJs. No more getting up at deadly five am to be bright and happy at six am on the radio to greet early work goers. So Baekhyun was happy. He'd been making more than enough from his hosting gigs by then, be it corporate parties, monstrous weddings, fashion shows or street events. He loved it, the spotlight and slight unpredictability, the thrill of interaction. He'd be staying on the radio for one show, that was the deal, but he didn't know what show yet.

"I'd be a great love advisor," he spouted then, half drunk and trying to unsuspectingly lean on Chanyeol. He knew it was bullshit, the fact he loved romantic comedies, be it acted out or written, and the pure luck of hooking up his uptight lovely college senior Junmyeon with Jongdae, who he met in the army and who was just as loud and buoyant as Baekhyun but just maybe a little kinder, a gentle soul deep down just right for Junmyeon, those things didn't make him a love expert. His puppy love for Kyungsoo never really bloomed into anything more than a few awkward dates where Baekhyun may have annoyed Kyungsoo a bit too much, or enough for him to hide his interest so well that Baekhyun eventually gave up, starved for attention. And Sehun, the model he'd met a few weeks ago and been sexting with this past week, well, he could be fun, but still ... Baekhyun was no expert.

Chanyeol laughed at the idea though, jostling Baekhyun from where he finally managed to settle himself on Chanyeol's bony shoulder, and Baekhyun was doomed. There was a spark of interest in his boss's eyes already.

"I'd love it," Chanyeol boomed. "Baekhyun's cheesy pointers on love and relationship. Perfect Tuesday and Thursday late night show."

Baekhyun choked on his beer. "Cheesy pointers?"

"It's perfect," Chanyeol nodded happily, his chin bumping against Baekhyun's temple.

"I think Baekhyun-ah could make it playful," Changmin mused.

"We're all too drunk," Baekhyun said, his head spinning.

"I'll write you a jingle." Chanyeol smiled down at him, already excited.

A month later _Love Light with Baekhyun_ went on air for the first time.

 

Baekhyun stares at the e-mail question about how to project a more attractive image, and he wonders if life is playing with him. The number of his listeners is dropping, as he found out today at the meeting. Maybe it's time for a change.

"You're a good DJ Baekhyun, but maybe you need some fresh air in your program, maybe you need another theme," Changmin suggested. 

It's the first warning really, but Baekhyun wonders himself how to attract those who listen to him twice a week when his unrepentant flirting with his listeners and his earnest attempts at good love advice are failing.

"You need to find your niche," he says now, on-air, when the song is over in reply to the e-mail. "Honestly, try to project a charming and confident air even if you don't necessarily feel it, it'll come to you. Find your move, even if it's something more funny than cool. Being confident is attractive. Find the style that compliments you, and finally wear the right size suit and ditch your old sneakers. Strangers don't need the intimate knowledge of your childhood favorite shoe wear when you were sixteen right away. Leave that for the third date! Try a new hairstyle, sometimes just looking the part is enough to inspire a boost in confidence. Ah, maybe I should go for red, red is a good color. Do you guys think I should go red?"

Baekhyun laughs, seeing a few messages pop up. "Ah, don't you all tell me how attractive I'd look with it. Actually ... do tell me. A good compliment can go a long way though I'm not sure you'd get past security at our radio. But still, if you compliment others, it makes you more attractive, too. Be straightforward! But don't overdo it. If you find someone who caught your eye, don't tell them it's because their t-shirt is too loud in this low key ambience bar. Tell them instead it's a wonderful color--"

"Brush your teeth before going out," suddenly someone interrupts, and Baekhyun who's gotten maybe a bit carried away, finds Chanyeol sitting opposite of him, one earphone looped behind his ear, the spare mic in his hand. "Fresh breath is important."

"Chanyeol," Baekhyun says, a little stunned, and Chanyeol laughs.

"Baekhyun, you look lovely today." Chanyeol is smiling at him, and Baekhyun coughs, trying to hide his ears turning red. "I love the hat, even if I'm sure normally your ears should be underneath it. It definitely looks cute though. So I thought I'd come by and tell you."

Baekhyun shakes his head to get himself going again, get over Chanyeol jumping into his sentence mid-breath. "And that's how it's done. Easy, isn't it? My night is better already," he says quickly, going for playful. He's still a little shocked, but he won't let it get to him. Sitting in the studio with Chanyeol used to be his second skin. "Thank you for stopping by Chanyeol. Your advice is definitely food for thought."

"I guarantee success," Chanyeol laughs, flashing his teeth.

"You most certainly seem to know what you're talking about. Your smile is so wide and so white. Really charming."

Chanyeol chuckles again. "Ah, Baekhyun won't get outdone in this game for the best compliment, I see."

"I definitely won't go down without a fight, handsome." Baekhyun winks. "But for now, let's play another song before we wrap today's show up with the author of its loved jingle, who decided to stop by."

Chanyeol is still laughing when they go into the playful song Baekhyun switched to on last minute, trying to fit the tone.

"Brush your teeth," he deadpans. Chanyeol shrugs his shoulders.

"It's good advice," and then quickly he adds, "Don't be mad!"

"I ..." Baekhyun can't be mad. It was fun. He still knows how to work Chanyeol's curveballs.

"I just saw you here," Chanyeol starts to explain, "and I was on my way out, but I'm kind of hungry and you were always up for good food, so I ..."

Baekhyun gets suspicious. "Why were you here this late anyway?"

"Fell asleep on the couch after a music session, and they just left me there." Chanyeol kind of pouts, but he's clearly not mad, Baekhyun can tell.

"Fine, let's get food. I'm inviting you as a payment for that impromptu guesting," Baekhyun says, flipping his hair out of his face, almost making his woolen hat fall off his head. Confidence, he has said moments ago. And it's not that he doesn't have it, only this is Chanyeol and does he always have to sweep Baekhyun off his feet like this? Out of the blue? Easy smile and surprises, always making Baekhyun want more.

 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun used to be an amazing duo, on and off air. They were together every morning and in between working on their scripts and during the song breaks on their three hour radio show, it felt like Baekhyun knew Chanyeol like the back of his hand. Like they were the best of friends. Only when their morning show ended, they drifted apart. Before they didn't need to hang out too much since the morning show took place five times a week, but after it ended its run they both did their own thing and just kind of forgot they needed to start actively meeting up to stay good friends, that they needed to keep in touch to know what was happening with each other. 

Soon enough they became more of work acquaintances that met at station functions and sometimes bumped into each other in the cafeteria, and Baekhyun, for some reason, didn't know how to approach Chanyeol, of all people, without feeling awkward when asking him to meet up. Maybe that was because the entire time, he was thinking how it would be better to ask him out on a date instead of a catch up coffee between good friends. 

 

There's an influx of emails about how fun it was to hear Baekhyun interact with someone who wasn't his listeners or various love gurus. There are also emails reminiscing Chanyeol's and Baekhyun's common DJ adventures. Baekhyun blinks at them a little apprehensively, and he knows he's scowling by the time he gets to the message from Changmin praising him for the fresh move and strongly suggesting he keeps it up. 

_Maybe you could even consider a co-host again._

Like Chanyeol would want to run a late night love advice show. The station is probably not suggesting Chanyeol in particular, Baekhyun checks himself quickly. He frowns and closes out of the emails, having chosen a few for the show already. He gets up and wiggles his hips a little to loosen up. Commercials are almost over and he needs to get into his groove.

 

"And now the last email today: _I've only been going out with my boyfriend for a few months, and I'm meeting my ex to study for exams; do I need to tell my current boyfriend about it? Or is that making it too much of a big deal? It's not that I want to hide it, but I don't want to make it sound like a "thing" either, it's just meeting to study. So I don't know ..._ "

That's a hard one, Baekhyun thinks and ends up saying as well. He's been thinking of how to answer this question the entire show. More interactive, his boss has suggested. Baekhyun doesn't like other listeners giving out advice because he's had a few phone calls on less complicated subjects than love turn offensive or violent on him during his DJ career, and he doesn't think it was just morning crankiness talking for those people. But what the hell. 

"What do you all think? Let's help our conflicted listener. What would you do? Call 9910-217 or write on our message board. In the meantime, let's listen to a song."

Baekhyun spends the break staring down the phone line, praying to god someone, and someone sane, calls. He gets a few messages, but the line is still unresponsive when he's ready to go back on air, so he plays the jingle as well for good measure. Just then the phone rings, and Baekhyun picks it up as he goes live. 

"Hello, you're on air on _Love Light_ , welcome on the show." 

"Hi Baekhyun," a voice booms in his studio. Baekhyun's leg jerks in surprise, and he hits it under the table. 

"Chanyeol, I see you're free and lonely on this Thursday night, since you've decided to join us again." What is going on? Baekhyun hasn't seen Chanyeol in maybe over a month, maybe a little less if he counts spotting his long legs in the cafeteria that one time, and suddenly ...

"Ah, I was just driving home from this live, and I was listening to your wonderful words of wisdom."

It's Baekhyun who snickers. "Are you in need of love advice then?" he asks, and he hears Chanyeol chuckling. 

"There's never enough of that," Chanyeol answers cheerfully, "which is why I'm calling ..."

"Well then, what do you think?" Baekhyun prompts. 

"I think honesty is the key in any relationship, and your listener should tell her new boyfriend just what she told us. Hiding the meet up might be burdensome for her or taken wrongly."

"But what if her boyfriend reads too much into it? Wouldn't it be better to just treat is as any other study session? You don't list all the people you study with to your partner," Baekhyun argues. 

"But this isn't just some random classmate. She should just say it, 'my ex is studying with me for this exam, and I don't want to hide it or make it a big thing, so I'm telling you. Maybe you could bring me coffee and we'd make out in the back of the library for a while.'" 

Baekhyun's about to protest, but instead he bursts out in laughter. "Interesting. So you're suggesting distraction. Isn't that kind of deception too?"

"Kissing in the library? No, that's just a very well spent study break," Chanyeol is clearly laughing. "But she should just tell him. Be honest, be true to yourself. You clearly thought about it, and I would want my partner to share their thoughts with me. To be straight up with me."

"And make out with you in semi-public inappropriate places," Baekhyun adds, trying to sound doubtful. He thinks it's an excellent idea, though. 

"You must admit that's a nice bonus."

Baekhyun shakes his head. "Well, thank you Chanyeol for your complex guide to solving this situation. Please get home safely," Baekhyun concludes the phone call, Chanyeol sing-songing a good bye in the background. "And to our listener, my advice was going to be to just tell the new boyfriend about the study session in general, treat it as any other project you want to tell him about, but now you have a very nice alternative. Though maybe I'd leave the making out for after the exam? Dusty air and books digging into your back-side aren't all that great, believe me." 

Baekhyun's message board is filling up with messages with tips on best corners of various university libraries to make out in. "Although if you do go for my shadow co-host's advice, my message board is brimming with tips for good make out nooks. I'm going to post some for you on our site, so you should check it out during our next song."

 

Baekhyun goes home in a much better mood that night. He collapses in his bed, checking his phone for his schedule one last time, and on impulse he messages Chanyeol.

 _What are you doing next Tuesday night?_ Before he has chance to wonder what he's doing, there's a reply. 

_Oh, what is this, a date? ;D_

Baekhyun blinks. 

_Yes, a hot one, with my second mic and frustrated listeners._

_Sounds like fun!_

Tuesday night turns to Thursday night to Tuesday night again and silly bickering about the best way to tell your parents you won't go on blind dates and Chanyeol sparkling at Baekhyun from across the booth and kicking him under the table when he thinks Baekhyun's being too cheesy. Then the radio e-mails Baekhyun the stats improvement, and Chanyeol gets an offer for his contract to add two days of late night hosting to his regularly scheduled indie rock Wednesday afternoons and live jam session guestings. 

Baekhyun's _Love Light_ has two permanent DJs before Baekhyun manages to blink an eye or realize he and Chanyeol are close again and spending late nights eating junk food and discussing their listeners' problems long after the show is over, and in emails, messages and phone calls even in between the show days, so much that Chanyeol is his most used contact, yet again. 

Baekhyun has a sense of deja-vu of the early mornings, coffee and sleepy big eyes, wide grins and his heart beating too fast every time he and Chanyeol reach for the same piece of paper in the studio, every time he catches Chanyeol off guard with something he said and Chanyeol's ears get red as he concentrates on catching up to Baekhyun. It's back to that fluttering feeling accompanying every time Chanyeol's in Baekhyun's space, being charming and wonderful, being Baekhyun's slowly approaching doom. 

 

" _Hello Baekhyun, and I guess hello Chanyeol too. I keep catching your program on my way from work every night and keep thinking that all this love advice is nice and all, and I might as well be the perfect boyfriend by now, but I have no girlfriend! So could you maybe give out some tips on how to, well, get one?_ " 

"Ah," Chanyeol chuckles, "pick up tips. You came to the right place." 

"You don't say, Chanyeol, and how many people have you picked up in a bar recently?"

"Not many, since I'm the best friend with my bartender. He always warns me off the weird ones before I can get myself into trouble."

"You would choose the odd ones," Baekhyun muses, "next time you should take me along as a wingman to save you from yourself."

"Ah, you mean to embarrass me terribly by spilling all my secrets," Chanyeol raises an eyebrow at Baekhyun, and Baekhyun wonders what secrets of Chanyeol he really knows other than the fact he goes to pubs more for the music than for the possibility of meeting someone. Chanyeol is a clumsy flirt from what he remembers. It's the cutest thing ever and gets a reaction every time, at least from Baekhyun anyway. 

"It works every time," he says instead. 

"I think we're confusing our listeners though," Chanyeol says, "so we should play a song and come back to sum things up." 

The moment the song starts, Chanyeol stretches out lazily, and Baekhyun forgets his train of thought, watching. 

"You know, we should actually go out sometime," Chanyeol suggests causally. 

Baekhyun blinks. "Uhm, right, yeah sure, I mean sometimes that's hard, most of my schedules are in the evening, but ..." 

"We'll figure it out," Chanyeol shrugs, "you should share your schedule with me."

Baekhyun blinks. Then before he can question why Chanyeol would want to know of his every event and dentist appointment, the song ends. 

"So today, we're talking about tips for single people who want to start dating again," Chanyeol starts. 

"I mean obviously, dating apps come to mind; there's so many these days," Baekhyun suggests. 

"Yes, but proceed with caution, people aren't candies you pick and choose and then discard when they're not to your taste anymore." 

"Ah, true, no dating just to get free food out of it!" Baekhyun may have done that before, like once, but he agrees with Chanyeol on this one. 

"Researchers at the University of Chicago found that people were twice as likely to find a date through friends and family than through the bar scene," Chanyeol continues, "so if the apps don't work, I'm sure there's a matchmaker hiding somewhere among your closest ones."

"It's definitely going to be cheaper than the official one, since those charge some serious fees and usually expect a bonus if you marry!" Baekhyun adds. 

"What Baekhyun means is buy your friend a lunch if they manage to hook you up."

"Make it a dinner!"

"Are you hungry?" Chanyeol asks. "Baekhyunnie's always so hungry after his show. I think giving out this advice gets him famished."

Baekhyun feels his ears turning red, "It's okay to be nervous," he says, stopping Chanyeol from saying more. His stomach is fluttering as it is. "I mean be brave, go out on Friday night, befriend your bartender so he can tell you if the person you're interested in is a decent person, also be a decent person yourself, read the atmosphere before you approach someone."

"Right, it is not the time to hit on that pretty girl when she's crying!" Chanyeol jumps in.

"Yes, it is not; hopefully that was not from your own experience, Park Chanyeol," Baekhyun attempts to sound stern. "Where was I, right, be confident in yourself, smile ..."

"Brush your teeth!" Chanyeol practically hollers. Baekhyun stares. "What? It's important. Fresh breath is important; it makes or breaks the first impression."

"Maybe we should just transmit an hour long toothpaste commercial."

"Well, if you added the right dental floss ad to it?"

"I think it's time for another song," Baekhyun concludes. He combusts into stupid, inappropriate giggles the moment it goes on. Chanyeol just watches on, smugly. 

"You know I'm right. So how about a drink after we're done tonight?" 

 

Apparently, Chanyeol is keen on sharing his bartender with Baekhyun because he takes him to **O** verdose, a rather hidden bar with a small stage and tall tables and dark wooden counter that looks like it could take a few dancers on top of it. 

"Chanyeol," the bartender grins the moment they get close, and he sweeps the dark wood in front of him in invitation. "And company," his smile gets a bit ... feral in the corner of his mouth there. In the dim light, he looks too pretty and soft, but Baekhyun doesn't feel that's a good description of him at all. 

"Heechul-hyung, good to see you!" Chanyeol leans forward and over the bar, nearly knocking someone in the head as he goes for the hug. 

"Not as bored with you here, now," Heechul says and places a bottle of beer in front of Chanyeol. "What can I get you, cutie?" he asks Baekhyun. 

"The phone number for your hairdresser?" Baekhyun says, grinning. "And a bottle of beer would be fine too."

 

It's fun, being here with Chanyeol. He gets excited because despite it being a Thursday, there is a band playing and they managed to get in on time for the last round of songs. He talks animatedly over their music, foot moving up and down to the rhythm and cheering loudly after every guitar solo. When the music's over, he actually introduces Baekhyun, telling Heechul all about _their_ love radio talk show, and Heechul almost chokes on laughter.

"Well, Chanyeol here sure is Casanova," he gets out in between deep breaths.

Few minutes later, Heechul is less bartending and more telling Baekhyun embarrassing stories about Chanyeol ordering a beer for every person who is single in the bar just to find out if that pretty girl at the corner table was free, and about the time Chanyeol turned tripping in front of this tall blond man he was eyeing all evening into a cheesy pick up line that may have actually worked, until it became clear the guy only spoke Chinese so he couldn't laugh at how bad the joke was. 

Chanyeol's ears and face get all red, and it must be from those stories rather than from alcohol because he, unlike Baekhyun, is still on his first beer. Still he indulges his friends, even adding tiny details that get lost in Heechul's storytelling. 

And it's not like Baekhyun spent the last two years only uselessly pining after Chanyeol, alone and brooding. He and Sehun actually dated for almost a year, and there were a few dates after that too, but it makes jealously crawl up his spine a little, how much Chanyeol seems to enjoy this whole thing, coming to a bar, trying to get to know people, dating.

"If only any of those people lasted past the third date," Heechul says then, seemingly put out. "I work so hard so he only goes for the seemingly normal ones, but I don't really know if this guy should give any advice on love beyond the first date to anyone."

"It's not like that," Chanyeol flails. "I mean, I just ... if I don't feel like there's something there, I don't want to lead them on."

"How can you even tell that so fast? Three dates, that's nothing," Baekhyun says, and when Chanyeol shrugs, Heechul leers. 

"Chanyeol is secretly the biggest sap ever. I think he believes in love at first sight." 

Well, that doesn't give Baekhyun much more hope. Chanyeol is shaking his head like a wet dog to deny what's being said, and it's so cute how embarrassed and betrayed he looks. "Bathroom," he mumbles, and Baekhyun watches him go, a little more light-headed than he could blame the beer for. It's so late, and he's getting sleepy too, and now he remembers his moderating gig in the evening and why this was a bad idea. He huffs at how easily he got pulled around by Chanyeol again, and Heechul laughs at him. Baekhyun doesn't remember when the man last served another customer but them. 

"So since tonight, it's you, not Chanyeol, that needs my guidance, let me assure you that Chanyeol is definitely a good choice to try and bag," he says, then his eyes narrow. "Though I think you already know that, even without me pimping him. Maybe I should warn you that I'll poison your drink if you hurt the resident big open heart instead."

"I don't think you need to worry. I'm not a heartbreaker here," Baekhyun sighs, cheek leaning against the bar wood. When did he get so tired? He sighs, forgetting to protest Heechul's conclusions, and Heechul pats his hair like he's some kind of a dog. 

"Look at this puppy love; that's so cute," he says. 

"Stop calling me that. I'm not cute. I'm hot and suave and...and awesome." Normally Baekhyun is, normally he could stand by this bar and pick and choose who's going to pay for his drinks tonight. But he doesn't need to do that tonight, and with Chanyeol, with his loud laughs, and warm arm around Baekhyun's shoulder when he explains something animatedly, he ... "Too tired, lost my edge..." Baekhyun mumbles. "I'll show you another time."

"Sure you will." Heechul is about to pet him again, but then Chanyeol is back from the toilet and looking down at Baekhyun, and Heechul's gone with, "I think it's time to put this cutie to bed."

Chanyeol watches Baekhyun, slightly confused, but then pays and grabs Baekhyun around his waist to lift him up. 

"Are you tired? You should have just told me today wasn't a good time."

It's always a good time to go out with Chanyeol. 

"Your bartender is exhausting," Baekhyun says instead. 

Chanyeol chuckles. "I think he likes you," he says. "I thought you'd like him, too."

"Were you trying to hook me up?" Baekhyun is mumbling, half slumped into Chanyeol, and he can walk by himself just fine, but he is not going to pull away if he doesn't have to. 

"What? No! I'd never ..." Chanyeol's ears are red again.

"Your ears are so cute," Baekhyun says, and maybe he's drunk more than he thought and maybe it's too late and he's getting old because the next thing he knows he is waking up in his bed, alone, with a glass of water and a note on his night table that says, "Hope you rest well." He is just a little sad Chanyeol is gone, along with his warmth and clean shirt smell. It's another day of not listening to his own advice. 

 

"Last time we talked a bit about how to get back into the dating game, how to get that first date," Baekhyun starts. Chanyeol texted him earlier that he got stuck in a recording session, and he's just got in, breaths heaving. He's trying to get out of his heavy coat while simultaneously bowing in apology, gesticulating wildly, and Baekhyun, despite feeling a little concerned after basically having slept on Chanyeol the last time they saw each other, has to fight the grin on his face. 

"But what happens next? How do you handle yourself on the first date? What do you do as to not ruin it, how do you make a good impression? I ran a little survey here at the station and among my friends, and some of their replies were rather shocking in their obviousness, so let's run through them. Among the most common replies there was an advice to put the phone down, and really my darlings, please do so. Your date should be more interesting than what your friend's dog is doing at the moment. Next is even more shocking, because everyone stressed how if you are the one who did the inviting, you should pay the bill!"

"Yes!" Chanyeol finally jumps in, still a little breathless. "I mean please do! It really is the right thing to do! Don't let the other person awkwardly add and subtract from the bill! Be a gentleman!"

"Or a gentlewoman," Baekhyun chuckles. "It's a first date, you're here to make a good first impression."

"What's next on your list?" Chanyeol asks, excitedly. "Also hello everyone, this is Chanyeol who was extremely late, and that is a thing you should not do on your first date."

"On any date, without a reason. But Chanyeollie here texted me and apologized, so he's forgiven, right?" Baekhyun winks at Chanyeol, and realizes that Chanyeol is ... a real person, not an invisible listener. And Baekhyun's flirting. He pulls his warm hat over his ears quickly while Chanyeol picks up his thread. 

"You're so kind, Baekhyunnie," he says. "And so should people be on their first date. Be decent, be kind, even to other people around you, be attentive, watch out for those things in your partner too. How you treat others says a lot about you. And of course be happy!"

Chanyeol's grin can be heard in his voice. "This is actually a proven fact," Baekhyun adds. "Happy people are more attractive." It's so painfully true, Baekhyun thinks. Chanyeol's practically sparkling. Yet again. Why is he so happy lately? It's almost contagious at this point. 

"Speaking about things proven or researched, apparently the majority of women report being attracted to men who dress in blue on the first date, so that's worth a try!" Chanyeol has finally sat down and has his papers in front of him, but it sounds like something he might have just made up. 

"Chanyeol is wearing blue right now, by the way, so now I wonder if he was actually late because he was on a date," Baekhyun muses. 

"If I were, then this show was a perfect exit strategy. Because as much as we talk about all the things to make the first date as great as possible, let's admit it, sometimes, it's not the case. And for those moments, having a definite timeline, something that makes it easy to end the suffering is a good idea. Take your first date for a lunch, make it a coffee before your band practice, make sure it doesn't have to stretch forever. If you decided you want a second date later on, at least there's more anticipation for the next meeting ..."

"And on that positive note, let us take a break before Chanyeol can teach us more ways to escape not-so-ideal first dates, if there ever was a one that wasn't such. No giving up, remember!"

"What? That was important advice," Chanyeol grumbles when the song comes on, and Baekhyun glares a little. 

"I know, I just. I guess I don't like when people give up easily," Baekhyun says. He doesn't actually know why it bugs him that Chanyeol said that since they've discussed it in emails beforehand. It brings him a little to the night in **O** verdose, to when Chanyeol explained he doesn't go on more dates if he feels or rather doesn't feel enough.

"I realize that," Chanyeol nods. "You were always so admirably persistent. It's totally the reason I didn't give up on the idea of doing more music sessions and didn't just turn into full time radio DJ when we were doing so well with our show. Because you kept telling me to not give up that part of me."

"Oh," Baekhyun's a little speechless, and suddenly Chanyeol looks startled or maybe a bit rueful. "Are you just trying to sweet talk me into forgetting you were late?" Baekhyun asks, going for playful as he tries to get a hold of himself.

"I thought you forgave me already." Chanyeol pouts.

"Forgive and forget are two very different things," Baekhyun says, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth and letting go with a pop. He catches Chanyeol staring, but before he can do anything about it, they're live again.

"We're back with more tips on first dates," Baekhyun starts cheerfully. "If you want to create a quick link with your date, say his or her name at least twice in your conversation. This shows attentiveness and that you want to connect."

"It definitely proves you haven't forgotten the name," Chanyeol adds, but he's still looking more at Baekhyun than at the papers with his tentative script. "Right, Baekhyunnie?"

"Well, that's definitely a plus! Don't forget to make eye contact too. Just don't stare creepily." Baekhyun knows an opportunity when he sees one, or at least usually he does, so he takes this chance, catches Chanyeol's eyes that keep drifting up and down Baekhyun's face and just looks at him. Chanyeol's eyes are huge and so pretty. He realizes the silence might be stretching a bit too long, but Chanyeol catches on.

"Definitely; pace yourself with obvious admiring. Baekhyun's trying to demonstrate right now, and I know I'm attractive, but it's giving me chills!" Chanyeol says that, but he's holding Baekhyun's gaze like this is some staring contest. Baekhyun's not going to lose.

It's then Chanyeol finally looks down at his papers, his right eye twitching a little.

"But let me finish today's topic with some more statistics. In a survey of 5,000 singles conducted by Match.com, 43% said fresh breath mattered the most before a date, 17% said stylish clothes, 15% said sexy fragrance, 14% said good skin, and 10% said great hair. So don't you forget to brush your teeth!"

"Seriously where is your hidden toothbrush commercials contract, Chanyeol? That's forbidden! Commercials go in between the jingles."

"Well, then let's hear ours. It's a really good one," Chanyeol sounds smug. "We'll be back after a song!"

After they answer a few questions from their listeners--there's so, so many of them lately--Baekhyun takes a deep breath.

"Since our theme today was the first date, I wanted to start an experiment today that I stumbled upon when preparing for today's show. It's called Date to Learn, and the premise is to go on three dates with different people, just for the learning. If something blossoms, great, but even if you don't meet your destined one, there is learning to be had and growing to be done!"

"Oooh," Chanyeol's gaping a little at their screen. "You just got at least ten date invites, so I think finding the candidates at least won't be a problem. But I suppose you're going to tell us about these dates?"

"I'll try to," Baekhyun nods, "or at least I'll talk about what I learned through them, about myself and the latest dating game I guess." 

"I'm almost tempted to spy on you on these dates to live report them to our listeners," Chanyeol chuckles. 

"Oh please, you just want to go on a date with me," Baekhyun laughs. He's getting carried away again. 

Their message board explodes with messages of _yes, please_. Baekhyun can't believe what he's seeing. 

_I feel like I'm watching a romantic comedy lately._

_You two are so cute, I ship you!!! *______*_

What is his life and radio show turning into? 

 

It's not that easy to actually find a date. Neither listeners nor Chanyeol let him forget about his promise, and so two weeks later, as he sits on a stool at his favorite noodle shop, feeling somehow down about Chanyeol bolting right after the show because he apparently had some party to attend, he asks Minseok, the cute flirty owner of the food stand, out. 

Minseok looks surprised for about three seconds then smirks a little. "Why not, you're kind of hot in that annoying kind of way," he says. 

Baekhyun blushes. Minseok's been so straightforward with him lately. Nights of Baekhyun poking at him, making stupid jokes and being an incorrigible flirt have clearly paid off. 

"You're just hot, hyung. Period. I'm excited."

 

"My first date really likes soccer," Baekhyun says the next Tuesday when Chanyeol asks him about the date. "So he suggested for us to go to an FC Seoul game. I've learned that I can get really into the game even without knowing the rules. Especially since all the men on the field had such nice thighs."

"That's what you learned on your date?" Chanyeol practically chortles.

"Well, I also actually did learn some soccer rules and that food at the stadium is not really to die for."

"Baekhyunnie," Chanyeol sighs, exasperated.

"Okay, okay, I think I learned that I have certain expectations of my date. I want more attention than I was getting until the game ended. Don't get me wrong, my date was really nice to me, especially when the ball wasn't rolling, and he really is hot, but ..."

Baekhyun is reminded of Chanyeol and his no dates to lead people on rule. He said that he had fun to Minseok, but he didn't promise to go out again.

Minseok nodded as if understanding. "I guess I've forgotten how to properly date myself. All I do is flirt with people over steaming hot water. I might have to work on my one track mind tendencies a little."

"It makes me realize how I should be to my dates too. Listen, to pay attention, you know. I definitely learned something from it." 

"So no second date?" Chanyeol asks, and his eyes look so gentle. Baekhyun wonders what that means.

"No, no second date with this particular person." Then Baekhyun remembers something. "Though I must say it's not because his breath wasn't fresh enough." 

Chanyeol breaks into a grin. Baekhyun breathes a little easier again. 

 

"Are you okay?" Chanyeol asks after the show ends, and Baekhyun just wants to kiss his furrowed brows. His attraction to Chanyeol keeps getting worse and worse. Everything Chanyeol does is either cute or hot or both, and Baekhyun barely focuses on the questions. 

"Uhm," he says, a little lost. 

"I mean I feel like you don't really like dating like this. I know you think relationships are work from the start, and that's true, so I think you pick your dates much more carefully than me. I just hope for the best. And ..."

"What are you saying?" Baekhyun laughs. "It's not like I've never been on a bad date. It wasn't even a bad date, just not good enough?" 

"Anyone would be silly not to pay attention to you," Chanyeol says a little hotly. "How could they not? You're so--" He stops himself, and Baekhyun feels his ears burning and his hat has fallen off his head when he was grabbing his bag, so it's in his hand now, and he can't hide it. 

"Your ears are cute too," Chanyeol blurts out, and suddenly everything is awkward. Baekhyun hadn't even thanked Chanyeol for dragging him home that night and ...

"Sorry to interrupt," the night sound technician comes in. 

"Right," Baekhyun says. "I've got to go." He strides out of the studio, completely forgetting about how he wanted to try a different late night diner with Chanyeol tonight because it's a little too soon to go back to Minseok's stand and the nights are super cold anyway. Baekhyun's pretty sure the ear thing was a compliment. He isn't sure what the other stuff Chanyeol said was, but his heart is beating too fast. He's probably projecting. Chanyeol's always been too kind of a soul, whose heart aches for everyone around him. 

 

It's getting warm outside. Chanyeol's joined Baekhyun sometime at the end of February, and now, it's clearly spring outside and love is in the air. 

Jongdae is a perfect sign of this because as that typical person in love, he decides Baekhyun needs to be in love, too. With Chanyeol.

"I can hear the sexual tension from here. You could probably cut it with a knife in the studio when both of you are there," he says over the phone, and Baekhyun can hear the glee in his voice. 

"Shut up, it's not like that," he snaps.

"I can hear you blushing, Byun," Jongdae snickers. "Why are you acting like a teenager who's pining after his first love and doesn't know what to do? I know you liked him the first time around you worked together and somehow he's back, so why don't you do something about it?"

Baekhyun huffs. "It's not that easy. We're friends. We're co-hosts again. I can't go around screwing either of that up because of some mild crush I may have at times."

"Mild crush, my ass. I bet you have hearts in your eyes when looking at him. Plus you two play off each other so well, imagine how much better that could be in bed."

Baekhyun hangs up. Jongdae sounds like some of their more imaginative fans in their comments that Chanyeol likes to read out loud and laugh about. It's always half mortifying and half achingly melodramatic because while Baekhyun secretly wants it to be real, Chanyeol is laughing. Good naturedly, but still. Baekhyun hasn't gone on his second date yet, and he keeps wondering how he's ever going to go on one if the only person he can think of asking out is Chanyeol.

 

"Today, we're going to bring you a different side of love. Statistic side!"

"In short, Chanyeol thinks I'm too big of an idealist, so he's going to tell you how much money your love costs," Baekhyun adds.

"That's not true," Chanyeol argues. "I only got this idea because of Valentine's Day statistics I saw, but I promise I have more."

"And you all can vote on whose facts are better. Whoever wins gets treated to cup noodles after the show! We'll take picture evidence!" Baekhyun explains. That too was Chanyeol's idea. People have been asking for viewable radio, something Baekhyun's against very much. He chews on his fingers too much for that to go public. But his face being on the program's website, that he can deal with.

"I'll start with the one that has been the inspiration. In the US people spent $1.7 billion on flowers this Valentine's Day, 73% of that by men, 27% by women," Chanyeol specifies. 

"And since we're spending money," Baekhyun takes over, "according to the condom company Durex, condom sales are highest around Valentine's Day, which means they are 20–30% higher than usual. That is actually great, being responsible is important!" 

"Ah, Baekhyunnie is pulling out the big guns. Well then here's something for those who believe that love goes through the stomach." Chanyeol's grin is a little evil. "The least popular flavor of edible underwear is chocolate and the most popular flavor is cherry." 

"I totally understand!" Baekhyun catches himself saying, and it's Chanyeol who goes red first. Baekhyun wonders how much they can push the lines before they get fined with inappropriate content by their own radio station. Changmin will have a field day with that. Well, he can try some more. 

"To curb your hunger, here's an interesting fact for you. Penicillin, a popular treatment for venereal diseases such as syphilis, was introduced to the world on February 14, 1929."

"Hey, that's playing dirty!" Chanyeol accuses. "And here I was going to talk about how 71% of people believe in love at first sight!"

"Ah well, I'm sure in those moments, penicillin is the last thing those people think about."

They actually trend on twitter that night, and in the end, that's how they decide the winner. It's the edible underwear that steals the show, and Chanyeol celebrates the win like he just won first prize in the lottery. 

"Well, before I go pose with my favorite cup noodles, I'm going to leave you with one more food related statistic, since they seem so popular. According to AskMen.com, Italian and Chinese food are favorites on dates, although Italian may be best prepared at home. The site recommends sushi for a second or third date!" 

Baekhyun heaves a huge sigh, "Oh no, I know where this is going."

"That's right, these foods are all easy on your breath. Only try the more adventurous things later because, you guessed it, cleanliness of teeth is one of the two top considerations at the beginning of a relationship."

At least this time, Baekhyun is ready with a song about a lonely toothbrush. 

 

Later on Baekhyun watches Chanyeol pose for a million pictures and just as many selcas with his noodles, all smug, and his mood cannot be brought down by his loss. 

"I can't believe you brought out the penicillin thing," Chanyeol says with his mouth full, and Baekhyun rolls his eyes.

"The date was too good to pass up on it." 

Chanyeol grins in agreement, and for once it's not attractive at all, noodles everywhere, but still Baekhyun finds himself blurting out an invitation he thought of for a while now.

"Do you want to go to a fashion show with me?"

Chanyeol chokes on his noodles, and that's what he deserves for not sharing. Not like Baekhyun wanted Chanyeol to feed him or anything, only maybe ...

"What? Are you asking me on--"

"I've moderated the official part of this fashion show every year since the beginnings of the brand, and I got invited to the after party too, since it's their fifth anniversary and they grew from this garage sales brand to something pretty big around Korea."

"Oh, that's interesting, but--"

Baekhyun doesn't really want to hear no. "The band you like should be playing. Busker Busker? So I thought you'd like to tag along, and I will have someone I know there to make sure I don't drink my dignity and future jobs away."

"Oh, okay ... yeah. That's fine. For a moment I thought you want me to be your second date or something." Chanyeol laughs, and it sounds strained, and Baekhyun grins through the squeeze of his heart. 

 

Chanyeol cleans up really well. The dark slacks and white shirt, top button open, nice watch, wide grin. Baekhyun can still see him despite all the reflectors that shine light right into his eyes. 

Chanyeol is also a perfect gentleman. He gets hit on by at least three models and one of the brand's designers, but he keeps close to Baekhyun all evening, even if Baekhyun sends him smoke signals that it's okay to leave if he wanted to. Baekhyun keeps track of his alcohol this time, not wanting the sudden repeat of the incident in **O** verdose, and he has ... so much fun. 

Chanyeol's driven them here. Baekhyun still doesn't have his license, and Chanyeol took this in stride with a remark of "you have me to drive you around" when Baekhyun admitted nothing has changed about this since two years ago. And so Chanyeol also drives them home. Instead of dumping Baekhyun on the curb around the corner, he parks his car and walks Baekhyun to his door and hovers over him a little. Baekhyun almost grabs his hand and pulls him down for a kiss. 

"Well, good night," Chanyeol says awkwardly, and Baekhyun swears Chanyeol's trying hard not to look at him for some reason. 

"Thanks for tagging along," Baekhyun says, earnestly, and somehow, despite himself, he ends up on his toes, kissing Chanyeol's cheek, his nose brushing along Chanyeol's jaw on his way back down. He turns around then and speed walks to his door, no grace left whatsoever, and hopes that just like any other time it gets awkward between them, this time too, by the time their next night at the radio station comes, the weird atmosphere will be gone. 

 

As a precaution and because Baekhyun can't stop thinking of the feeling of Chanyeol's skin against his lips, Baekhyun opens a dating app that weekend and gets himself a date. It happens on Monday, and it's a lovely lunch on one of the first days warm enough to have it outside. Jonghyun is attentive and sweet and smart, and Baekhyun should love it. In the end, he can't string him along. He's starting to realize that no matter how hard he tries, dates with people who are not Chanyeol might not work. Not as long as he doesn't get over Chanyeol, which now that Chanyeol is everywhere, in his mind and in his daily life, might be a hard thing to do. 

 

Chanyeol is upset that night. He keeps spacing out, and his face is serious, his eyes clouded. Baekhyun's attempts to pull him out of his shell don't work, and he wonders how many people listening can tell. There are lots of them now, so much they even got nominated for some award for radio shows. Baekhyun isn't sure what they should be excelling in since he didn't pay much attention to anything else but Chanyeol's enthusiasm and pride when he was talking about the nomination. But now, along with Chanyeol's happiness, all the light from _Love Light_ is gone. 

Before Baekhyun can stop him, Chanyeol goes off script, completely abandoning their theme of how to deal with quirky habits of your partner in a relationship to read a question that just came in. 

" _Dear Baekhyun and Chanyeol, this isn't really a love advice, but I have a thing that's been bugging me for some time, and it's eating me away. The other day I went on a blind date to a part of the city I usually don't wander into and two tables down from me, there was my best friend's boyfriend, with a girl, who was not my best friend. I tried not to mind it; he may have friends or family who like to act cute and flirty. But in the end they kissed, and not chastely at all, and I don't know what to do now. It's clear he was cheating, and I don't know if I should meddle, if I should break my best friend's heart._ "

It becomes clear right away, what is eating Chanyeol up, even if Baekhyun doesn't know the details.

"You have to tell her," Chanyeol says gravely then, and Baekhyun's heart hurts even more because Chanyeol's flinched visibly saying those words. 

"That's not an easy thing to do, I know," Baekhyun joins him, and he tries to reach for Chanyeol's ankle under the table, hoping to show support. 

"But, what if he does it again? Does it all the time? And your friend puts everything into her relationship. Would she not want to know? How much more painful it would be if it all comes into the light later?" Chanyeol muses out loud, spinning his phone in his hand. 

"I guess, someone else might say not to meddle," Baekhyun adds. "That you don't know the whole story, but I think --" 

"Honesty is very important," Chanyeol interrupts him, "in love and in friendship, I think. So there's no way you can keep something like this secret."

Honesty, Baekhyun thinks. The mood has turned even darker, and he needs to change that somehow. He plays a mellow song and tries to speak, but Chanyeol is staring at his phone, quiet, gone some place else. 

"For our last segment, I decided to be honest with you all," Baekhyun says when the song ends. Chanyeol's eyes finally flicker to him. Baekhyun takes a deep breath. "I went on my second date two weeks ago, but I didn't know how to talk about it, so I didn't bring it up."

At least now, Chanyeol seems to focus on something else than on his gloom, on thinking about what he has to do, something he probably hates the most, on hurting someone even if it's not his fault. 

"You went on a date?" he asks, while Baekhyun still searches for a way to talk about it and not to put his heart on display for everyone to point at. "So how did it go?"

"It went … wonderful," Baekhyun says, and Chanyeol is looking at him now, confused. 

"Oh, does this mean something is there?"

"Ah, see that's the thing. It went wonderful and yet …" Another deep breath. Another moment for Baekhyun to hesitate. "My date was great, paid attention to me, said all the right words, we even had things in common, and in the end, I told him I'm sorry that I don't want to do it again."

There's silence, and there shouldn't be silence on radio, but Chanyeol is looking at Baekhyun intently now, as if he could see right through him, and Baekhyun knows he's pouting and scrunching his nose. He can't think of anything else but to put up the hood of his oversized hoodie to hide, even if it's just Chanyeol in the studio with him. 

"So, what did you learn from your date?" Chanyeol asks, and suddenly he's reaching over the table and holding Baekhyun's hand, his big thumb rubbing against Baekhyun's palm. It's for Baekhyun's comfort, and Baekhyun wishes he could do things like this just as easily for Chanyeol, without fearing that he might ruin everything. 

"I don't know. I… guess I learned that sometimes it's not even the first impression that matters. That I listen to my heart much more than to reason because my date was definitely someone I should have logically liked very much, and yet. I …" Baekhyun learned that he's too much in love with someone else, and as such no one else is going to make him even try. 

"Sometimes, feelings are hard and confusing," Chanyeol says. "Even for _Love Light_." It's gentle and soothing and more for themselves than for the listeners.

"Sometimes we might be making things sound lighter than they are," Baekhyun chuckles, still a little darkly, but a bit easier. 

"Ah well, we have to keep the decorum or else our listeners will run away." Chanyeol sounds almost playful now. He keeps his hand on Baekhyun's until the final jingle comes on, and then he pulls away, and suddenly it's like all the awkward they managed to ignore all the previous times is back, tenfold. 

"I have to go," Chanyeol says, not looking at Baekhyun anymore. His gloom is starting to return.

"Chanyeol," Baekhyun doesn't know how to continue. He wants to hug Chanyeol, but he doesn't want to give him more reasons to figure out Baekhyun's in love with him. But Chanyeol still looks so sad. 

"My sister. I … I called her and asked her out for dinner." There's so much hurt in Chanyeol's eyes. 

"Afterwards, meet me afterwards," Baekhyun says. Chanyeol just waves him off and leaves. 

 

Chanyeol's sister Yura is beautiful. She's a more feminine and fragile version of Chanyeol really, their genes shining through their equally big eyes. Even if she has been clearly crying, she is graceful and smiling just a little as she deposits a snotty and partially drunk Chanyeol into Baekhyun's surprised arms in front of his apartment a few hours later, well on the way to dawn. 

"He told me to drop him off here, that you have a date."

Baekhyun blushes. "That's not …" he trails off. Chanyeol sighs, leaning heavily on Baekhyun's shoulder. "Is he all right? I mean are you all right? I …"

"Well, I think he's taking the fact that he just possibly canceled my wedding much harder than I am," Yura says. "I told him he shouldn't worry. Next time I'll do better for myself. Maybe I should start listening to your love advice show. It's quite the talk of the town these days."

"Don't do it," Chanyeol says, first thing he's really spoken other than mumbled hello when he got out of the taxi. "It's all fake." 

"Well, that's the spirit," Baekhyun says, extra cheerful, and Yura laughs. 

"I should go. Have fun! Don't give him too much alcohol, he's already probably had enough, this light weight." Yura pinches Chanyeol's side, and Chanyeol barrels forward, hugging her tightly until she pinches him again, at least three times to make him let go. He sighs as her taxi leaves and Baekhyun starts pulling him into his apartment.

Once they're upstairs, Baekhyun looks at Chanyeol slumped on his couch.

"I should have punched him. I really should have, but I gave him the benefit of doubt the first time, and the second time I was actually with people and couldn't do it."

"You wouldn't hit a fly, Park Chanyeol." Baekhyun says, itching to hug him again, so bad. They're friends, it shouldn't be that hard. 

"Pathetic, I am. Coward," Chanyeol mutters. 

"I'm sorry," Baekhyun says in the end, and puts down a bottle of soju. He sits next to Chanyeol, pressing their thighs together and pours each a glass of it. 

"It's okay. I'm here now?" Chanyeol mumbles some more, his hand reaching for Baekhyun's. 

 

So they get spectacularly drunk, which makes it much easier for Baekhyun to snuggle attack Chanyeol at one point and hug the breath out of him. That's how they fall asleep, on Baekhyun's couch, and that's how Baekhyun wakes up, just after dawn, with his mouth full of Chanyeol's shirt and head hurting almost as much as his heart. He doesn't want an awkward morning though, doesn't want to add to a pile of things they don't ever talk about, so he runs his fingers through Chanyeol's mop of hair one last time and drags himself to his own bed. 

 

The atmosphere has been kind of weird for two weeks now, ever since Chanyeol left Baekhyun's apartment without breakfast.

It doesn't mean Chanyeol doesn't try to lift it up though. 

"Everyone thinks I should be your third date," he says, after he's finished giggling to himself about a series of emails. He probably didn't mean to say that out loud because he startles and looks down, searching for something else to share with Baekhyun. 

Baekhyun wonders why Chanyeol must find the idea so impossible. 

" _Baekhyunnie here, Chanyeollie there, are these pet names? I feel like I'm listening to puppies yipping at each other_ ," he reads next and he laughs out loud. "That actually reminds me of Heechul. He calls you a puppy and keeps asking when you're coming back. He almost managed to persuade Jongin we're dating the other night." Chanyeol snickers again, and Baekhyun just kind of … snaps.

"Why is that so funny to you? Is that possibility such a laughing stock?”

Chanyeol startles. "What? I … No … I--" 

The song ends and the jingle starts playing, Chanyeol's smooth singing voice a bit too jarring in Baekhyun's headphones all of a sudden. 

"Hello, this is Baekhyun."

"And this is Chanyeol."

"And you're listening to _Love Light_. Let us shine some light on true love."

Chanyeol is inching closer to Baekhyun and trying to catch his eyes, looking extremely repentant. Baekhyun just looks down at his script and he finds himself thinking, yet again, how ironic things are.

"Today, we'll talk about what to do to maintain your relationship. But before we do so, I have a question here from someone who's come back for advice again:

_Love Light!_

_Thank you for cheering me on the other day. I tried my best, and I succeeded! Well, I kind of did. The guy I was trying to get close to is now my dear friend again. It's wonderful, only as I suspected I really like him now, and I'm afraid to do more. Now that we're friends, I don't want to lose that just because I feel more. What if he not only breaks my heart but also stops being my friend again? He's so good to me too!_

_What do I do? Your devoted fan, Firebird_27_ "

Chanyeol stopped looking at Baekhyun by now, and he's oddly fidgety, probably still thinking of just what made Baekhyun explode in his face like that.

"I know this doesn't fit tonight's theme, but I really wanted to answer this question because I remember really rooting for my devoted fan." Baekhyun laughs. "And I'm so glad he made progress!" Baekhyun did too, even if it wasn't really his doing that Chanyeol suddenly waltzed right back into his personal space. If anything, Baekhyun has felt even more cowardly since then. But maybe if Firebird_27 can do it, Baekhyun can too. 

"Dear Firebird_27, you did so well! Hooray! Good job. I understand your fears too, but won't you regret it? Won't it always be somewhere in the back of your mind? Already the last time you said you felt connection to this person. If they're good friends with you, I'm sure you can manage to keep that friendship even if they don't feel the same. Maybe some time will be needed, but really, you've come so far, so you should keep going. Please confess, I'm rooting for you and sending a song as a cheer!"

Chanyeol has stayed quiet the entire time, and during the break too, he keeps fiddling with the papers, mouth pursed, hands unsteady. Baekhyun focuses on himself instead. On how he really, really should take his own advice. The heartbreak hurts before it even happens, though.

Instead, they go on-air again and Chanyeol opens with his favorite, a statistic. "The most normal amount of time for a couple to break up is after three to five months of being together. So what do you do in order to not be one of them? What do you do to make your love last?"

They talk about how you should give your partner admiration and appreciation, how you should always listen and give each other safety, how to learn to deal with conflicts rather than avoid them. Baekhyun feels like the biggest hypocrite ever. What does he know? He can't even make the first step. 

"Well, love is only a chemical cocktail, right. Even if it makes us better," Chanyeol says, but it's like he's baiting Baekhyun, like he knows where Baekhyun is in his head. 

Baekhyun doesn't think love is just an accidental match. That's not why he agreed to host this show. 

"You don't even believe that," he says instead, seeing Chanyeol raise his eyebrow a little, a bit of challenge returning to them. "To use your statistics, or what not, most long term partners describe their relationship as being friends first last and always. Love is a choice, an action; it means actively appreciating goodness in each other and working daily and patiently on your relationship. Maybe we can't exactly choose who we love, but we should be able to work on loving them the best way we can."

Baekhyun's a little hot around the collar, and his fists are closed tightly. "What Baekhyunnie is saying is that you should not easily give up,” Chanyeol says, suddenly supportive. “Hervert and Zelmyra Fisher were married for a total of 86 years and 290 days, before Mr. Fisher passed away. Even if that isn't your ultimate goal, I think it gives a person a bit of hope, doesn't it?" Chanyeol is so serious, and he keeps looking straight at Baekhyun; it's a little disconcerting. 

Baekhyun ends the show before Chanyeol manages to tell people to always have fresh breath when going to bed with their partner for the night, or something similar. 

 

Neither of them says anything as they pack. One really could cut the tension in the air even if Baekhyun doesn't think Jongdae is right about the sexual nature of it. Chanyeol might be confusing sometimes, but he's made it clear dating Baekhyun is nothing but a fun joke to lighten the mood for him. 

"We should go on a date," Chanyeol says then, when Baekhyun is almost out the door. "I mean. Let's go on a date!"

Baekhyun turns slowly around to look at him. "You don't have to do everything our listeners request. Don't stretch yourself, Chanyeol."

"No. I mean that's not it. Let's just go on a date. Actually let's go right now. You look lovely, you're even wearing blue, and before I chicken out of asking you again, we should just do it."

Before Baekhyun knows what hit him, Chanyeol is pulling at his hand. "I know this place. Just found about it the other day actually. It's a really cozy restaurant, but the owner is pretty extravagant and thanks to that their kitchen is open until like two am, and it's Italian, so that's perfect."

Baekhyun looks down at where Chanyeol is clutching his hand really hard. He pulls away.

"I'll be right back," he says and dashes for the bathroom. He has a freaking toothbrush in his bag, and Chanyeol is an idiot who is responsible for Baekhyun thinking of that when faced with the prospect of a date. A date with someone he really wants to impress. He might even be willing to chew slowly on this one. 

If nothing else, brushing his teeth will give Baekhyun time to process what's going on out in that hallway. He's pretty sure Chanyeol is dragging him out on a date, and he's a little too eager about it, even for him, to just be for their radio show. 

When Baekhyun's done cleaning up, he runs his hands through his hair several times to make it look a bit less like he just rolled off his couch. There's no point in pacing around the bathroom, so he steps out, suddenly scared that Chanyeol might be gone, that it was some kind of weird joke after all. 

Instead, Chanyeol’s standing right where Baekhyun left him and is now looking at Baekhyun like he's seeing him for the first time and he thinks Baekhyun is the sun of his universe. 

"What is it?" Baekhyun asks, when Chanyeol bites his lip to hide a grin. In answer Chanyeol only leans down, his hand coming up to cup Baekhyun's cheek and his thumb brushing the corner of his mouth. 

"Toothpaste," Chanyeol mumbles, sounding awfully pleased, and then he's kissing Baekhyun right on the mouth, soft press of his lips that's absolutely sweet and definitely too chaste. Baekhyun doesn't let it end there, hand grabbing for a fistful of Chanyeol's sweater and keeping Chanyeol where he is when he tries to pull away. He sighs and swipes his tongue over Chanyeol's upper lip, and Chanyeol gasps and then suddenly it's not chaste at all. 

Chanyeol wraps an arm around Baekhyun to bring him closer, pushing his tongue into Baekhyun's mouth and Baekhyun presses into the touch on his waist eagerly. He is so hungry for this kiss that it's making his stomach hurt, and it's so good, the warm unrelenting tongue and the way Chanyeol lets Baekhyun bite and sooth his bottom lip over and over again. The kiss only ends when Chanyeol pushes Baekhyun against the wall of the hallway where they're standing and does so a little too hotly, making Baekhyun groan in pain. 

Chanyeol pulls away, but only to nuzzle his nose against Baekhyun's jaw as he smooths his hand up from Baekhyun's waist to where Baekhyun hit himself against the wall. 

"I …" he starts to say, but Baekhyun hushes him with a quick kiss then pulls at Chanyeol's hair so that Chanyeol looks straight at him. 

"I like you," Baekhyun says, so brave now. "Actually, I might be in love with you, and I guess I'm incapable of doing what I preach, but it's really hard to be all those things I want others to be, so it took me a long time, but I am in love with you, so you should know this third date is a really big deal for me and …"

Chanyeol manages to lean down again, enough to brush his lips against Baekhyun's hair and temple. 

"Good, then don't go on dates with people who are not me anymore, please!"

 

Baekhyun gets into the studio first, and he starts sifting through emails, wanting to be ready with some funny ones when Chanyeol gets here. 

_Hello Love Light,_

_Thank you for all your great advice. I figured you might want to know how my story ends. Or maybe begins._

_I finally gathered my courage and acted! As it turns out, the feelings might be mutual. Which is a miracle since I was an idiot, always trying to act tough and silly, even laughing when people suggested we might be good together! You should know that I only ever laughed because I thought it would be impossible for me to be that lucky, but I know now how that may have sounded. I let my love go on dates and even asked him about them later, all the while wishing those dates were all me. I kept trying to pull away even when I saw it in his eyes that he wanted me to be closer. I was so dumb!_

_Still, my love is amazing, and he does his best to love me back every day. I am the luckiest person who has ever loved. Thank you for making it happen!_

_With all my love, Firebird_27._

 

"I'm Baekhyun, and this is _Love Light_. Today I will tell you all about my third date. But let's start with what I have learned. There is something as too much of love advice. And even garlic kisses can taste great. So today, take a breath and be yourself. Love and date from the bottom of your heart. Love right!"

**Author's Note:**

> Mods' Notes: During the duration of BAE2016, we're kindly asking you to leave your reviews on [Livejournal](http://baeconandeggs.livejournal.com/39717.html). Thank you for reading!♥


End file.
